January 2010
1 post
How to Do One Arm Push Ups for 20 Reps →
I typically don’t make new year’s resolutions, but one thing I would love to be able to do is the one arm push up. When I first started lifting the big goal was to bench press 225 pounds for reps…
December 2009
1 post
An Aggressive Dieting Approach to Use After a... →
Most people, myself included, spend about 3-4 weeks eating higher calories than normal during the holidays. I am not just talking about on the actual day of the holiday. I had at least 10-12 days in…
September 2009
7 posts
Ryan Kwanten's Workout - Jason Stackhouse from... →
Ryan Kwanten is an example of a guy who stays extremely fit without going anywhere near a gym. He also keeps a normal amount of muscle mass for his frame, while keeping his body fat low. The result…
Fitness Forums - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly! →
A few years ago I decided to visit a few fitness forums to give helpful advice. Unfortunately back then, there were only two types, hardcore bodybuilding forums or extremely generic health and…
"Workout Like a Rock Star" - Literally →
I have been alerted to an extremely entertaining body weight course used by actual Rock Stars while on tour. The course used to cost $27, but it has just been released for free. The thing about…
Fitness Tips and Observations From My First 40... →
Instead of doing a post analyzing a scientific study, I wanted to make a list of random fitness tips that came to my head when thinking about staying in shape and eating well, etc. These are just…
How Interval Training Works - Lactic Acid, Oxygen... →
I talk about different forms of interval training and circuit training on this blog on a regular basis. I tend to shy away from discussing things like lactic acid and oxygen debt, because these are…
How to Get Stronger at Push-ups and Pull-ups Using... →
I want to explain to you a method of how to get stronger at push-ups and pull-ups. I found out about this method from former Soviet special forces trainer, Pavel Tsatsouline. Pavel is a guy I began…
The Common Cold Has Little Effect on Exercise... →
I wanted to do a post about having the symptoms of the common cold and whether you should still exercise or take a break entirely. With the weather beginning to cool down and seasons changing in…
August 2009
8 posts
"The Vacation Body Blueprint" - My Free 56 Page... →
I am about a day late in releasing my free “vacation prep” report, but it wound up being 16 pages longer than expected. People have been asking me for something like this for about 2 years. I…
"Getting In Shape for a Vacation" Report Almost... →
This post is more of a quick update. I am close to finishing a free, but comprehensive, report on getting in exceptional shape for a special event. This report will outline a simple, yet effective…
Motivation Tips for Sticking to Your Workout... →
Today I am putting up a guest post from Vic over at Gym Junkies. Although my workout philosophy is different than what Vic teaches, the guy keeps in amazing condition year round and has my…
Bar-Barians - Ninja Masters of the Pull Up Bar! →
This post is to prove to people they can reach an ultra-high degree of conditioning with something as simple as the pull up bar. I’ve been writing a lot about body weight training and I’ve…
Yvonne Craig (Batgirl and Green Lady from Star... →
Yvonne Craig is my idea of a woman who stayed in great shape her entire career without losing her femininity. In fact, I think women had it right in the 60’s. For the most part they remained slim…
Reduce Calories and Reduce Unnecessary Time Spent... →
If you reduce calories consumed you can get the same fat loss results with less time spent exercising. Eating 2,000 calories more per week than you need and then doing cardio 5 times per week to…
Being a Little Overweight Can Reduce Life... →
It has been shown that being obese can increase risk of an early death by 2 to 3 times, but what about being just a little overweight? In my day to day life I see many examples of people who are…
Advanced Bodyweight Exercises: No Gym, No Problem!... →
Several readers have recently asked me about good bodyweight exercises to stay in shape while on vacation. While I could come up with a good routine or two that I have used in the past, my buddy…
July 2009
7 posts
Eat Stop Eat vs The Warrior Diet →
I’ve been getting a ton of questions about Eat Stop Eat and The Warrior Diet and which is better. I’ve been using intermittent fasting steadily for 2-3 years (can’t remember exactly when I…
Low Carbohydrate Diet or Low Fat Diet? It Depends… →
Low carbohydrate diets have received a lot of press the past few years. For someone who grew up under the “fat is bad” mindset, this took me a while to grasp. Although I look and feel much better…
Nutrition Plays A Small Role in Building Muscle... →
What if half of what you have been told about building muscle mass is completely wrong? You see, building muscle is almost 100% about training and has very little to do with nutrition. The main…
Tighten Your Obliques Without Adding Size With... →
I gotta say, great oblique muscles are more rare than six pack abs. In fact, up until a few years ago I neglected this body part. The thing is, great obliques make the rest of your mid section look…
Improve Your Life by Improving Your Posture →
A little over a month ago I was doing a bit of research online on improving posture. This research wasn’t for a blog post, it was because I was trying to insure that my own posture didn’t get worse…
Human Growth Hormone (HGH) - Breaking Down a Few... →
Increasing natural Human Growth Hormone (HGH) levels in your body is a major key in staying lean year round. It is also a plays a big role in preserving muscle mass when losing those last few pounds…
Increase Natural HGH Without Injections, Sprays,... →
Time to talk about your body’s potent fat burning hormone: HGH. I wanted to let you guys know up front that this post isn’t a grand scheme to sell some sort of HGH supplement. There are some pills…
June 2009
8 posts
Why Most Celebrity Workout Routines Are Overrated →
I have to come clean and admit something before I begin this post. I use celebrity workout routines and various celebrity names to pull in additional visits to my site. For some reason, celebrities…
"Positive Action" Gets Results - Not Positive... →
I am naturally a pretty positive and upbeat person, but don’t buy into the whole positive thinking movement. The way I look at achieving goals like getting in great shape or building a successful…
Creative Circuit Training - Experimenting With Fat... →
There are dozens, if not hundreds of circuit training routines that are effective at helping you drop body fat. I was doing my daily cruising of the Internet and found an outline of a routine by…
"Mindless Eating" - Why Do We Continue to Eat When... →
I was doing some research online today and stumbled across a description of a book that made good sense to me: Mindless Eating. I haven’t ordered the book yet, but I liked the parts that I’ve read…
Why Walking is Necessary for Good Health - Even If... →
I use to think that walking was just for people who weren’t fit enough to do any “real” exercise. I figured that any activity that 99% of the population can easily do, just can’t be tough enough to…
Interval Training Improves Your Endurance, Better... →
I’ve been a fan of HIIT and interval training for well over a decade. It jacks up the metabolism, increases your natural fat burning hormone (HGH) and simply helps you lose a lot more body fat than…
"Cardio Compensation" - Certain Cardio Workouts... →
I used to be shocked at the number of people I saw in the gym who put so much time into cardio workouts without seeing any results. Many of these people are putting forth much more effort than me,…
Fitness Black Book Turns 2 Next Week - A Big... →
I can’t believe I’ve been blogging for close to two years now! Back on June 8, 2007 I made the first post on this site and was just hoping that someone would eventually find it. I waited 4 days and…
May 2009
7 posts
The Evolution of Weight Loss - Guest Post by Brad... →
I can’t thank Brad Pilon enough for taking time out of his busy schedule to do a guest post for my site. Any of you who are fans of “Eat Stop Eat” or have been following Brad on Twitter know that…
Personal Training - Good for Brainstorming, But... →
I don’t have anything against personal training or personal trainers. Having said that, I think ultimately you are the one who will eventually find your own ideal routine. Even the goal of my site…
7 Common Strength Training Mistakes. Is Your... →
I wanted to make a post outlining the most common strength training mistakes I see in the gym on a regular basis. I know that all of us reach sticking points in strength gains, but you could be…
Is It Okay to Eat Right Before Going to Bed? "Yes"... →
“Is it okay to eat right before going to bed?” This is a question I have been asked quite a bit recently. The problem is that it really depends upon how much you eat before going to bed and what…
Red Wine & Resveratrol. Why a Beer Guy is... →
I’m more of a beer guy than a wine guy. I know it is supposedly sophisticated to love wine, but I do prefer a cold beer. That being said, I’m slowly introducing wine into my diet. I’ve realized that…
I'm Shocked That Bodybuilding is Still Popular →
I believe that people should do what they enjoy and if they like to follow bodybuilding, that is cool. That being said, it still boggles my mind that such a large amount of people watch bodybuilding…
Constructing an Effective Diet Plan to Get Lean... →
So both me and my girlfriend are going to “lean out” a bit right before summer. Neither of us has much body fat to lose, but getting extra lean allows us to still look sharp even if we gain 5 pounds…
Get in Shape for Summer - My Detailed Spring... →
I typically recommend that people stay in shape year round, so they don’t ever have to worry about getting in shape for summer. That being said, the reality is that it is easy to slide when you are…
April 2009
9 posts
Marathon Cardio - Can Do More Damage Than Good →
I live a few miles away from a beautiful lake in Seattle called Green Lake. Every spring when the weather becomes nice and the sun comes out, people flock to this lake. Around the perimeter of the…
"Exercise Addiction Inventory" - A 6 Question Test... →
Yes, you can have too much of a good thing. Exercise is great, exercise addiction is not. Looking back, I know there were times when I was a bit obsessed with exercise. These days, I like to get it…
Workout Intensity and Fat Loss - Hitting the Sweet... →
If you want to lose fat at a rapid pace, you do need to push hard at things like intervals, circuits and HIIT. The problem is knowing how hard should you push. Figuring out the ideal workout…
The Paleo and Primal Diet. Eating Like a Caveman? →
Here is a quick outline on the paleo diet, or what some call the primal diet. Some of my favorite fitness blogs on the internet are big advocates of this way of eating and I just wanted to touch on…
Drop Isolation Exercises to Get Through Sticking... →
Here is a good strategy for people who like isolation exercises, but who also want to get strong in the basic lifts. This strategy is to include isolation exercises at the beginning of a strength…
Build Muscle Mass With Body Weight Exercises →
I don’t talk too much about building mass, since it really isn’t the main focus of this site. That being said, I know there are quite a few readers who do want to add a bit of mass. I am going to…
Adjusting Cardio Intensity to Match Your Diet →
It is almost impossible for me to recommend an exact cardio routine unless I know the diet someone is following. If someone is dieting hard and is already “carb depleted”, I am going to recommend a…
Why a "Junk Food Hangover" is a Good Sign! →
For the longest time, I couldn’t understand why eating a sugary snack impacted me harder than most people. I thought there was something wrong with me. You see, when I eat during the day it needs to…
March 2009
10 posts
Post Workout Shakes? Not If Fat Loss is Your Goal! →
I have been avoiding post workout shakes for quite a few years now. In fact, I typically wait 1-2 hours after working out before I eat any type of calories. This flies in the face of the standard…
"The Supplement Conspiracy" by Rusty Moore.... →
If you wanted to find out the truth about supplements, who would you turn to? A fitness magazine that makes a large portion of revenue from supplement company advertising? What about a personal…